Thursday, January 28, 2010

Hey Neighbor!







Join me in my neck of the woods for a spell.
Pretend I’m a Mr. Rogers clone.

The Husband woke up for a “very early” business call, stepped out on the balcony off his office this morning, and immediately spotted a hot air balloon off in the distance. He was too busy trying to sound brilliant while half-awake to bother locating a camera. So the photo above is a publicity shot of one of the many hot air balloons that often fly above Temecula. Judging by the hills and mountains, we live a tad Northwest of where this particular balloon is.

We fully intend to go up in one of these things this Spring. Well, I’m afraid of heights, and I say I want to go up now, when it’s all very abstract and fun sounding, but we’ll see if I ever really do.

The skies around here have been particularly gorgeous lately.

Last night I decided to jazz up some leftover mashed potatoes. I chopped up a mess of four kinds of peppers, garlic, and onions. Lightly wiped a casserole dish with a bit of extra-virgin olive oil, slammed the spuds in evenly, sprinkled generously with a five cheese blend, (I used the Mexican variety but any would do), and topped with the pepper mixture. Popped in a preheated, 400 oven and took it out when it was all bubbly and slightly brownish in spots. Lordy mercy, were they good! This is the kind of side dish that can really make a mundane meal sing. My pork chops were very jealous of all the attention the taters got. I roasted some squash as well, coated with a bit of aforementioned ever-versatile olive oil and a little fresh rosemary, pepper, and sea salt.

I've been writing like a maniac. When I’m not working on this project, I’m thinking about this project. I dream up solutions and wake up in the middle of the night and I have to go jot down these brilliant ideas. Thank you muse, but could you whisper in my ear when I’m awake!

Anyhow, that’s all I got for today. Better get back to work.

What’s happening in your neighborhood, anything worth mentioning?






All Rights Reserved. © 2009 by Elizabeth Bradley.

21 comments:

Unspoken said...

Those potatos sound good! I am having a major case of writer's block in my neighborhood!

Helen Ginger said...

Those potatoes sound delicious. I'm planning out snack recipes for Super Bowl day. Now I need to find out which Saturday that is.

Elizabeth, I tried to find your email address, but couldn't. So pardon me for taking space here to answer a question you left on my blog. You said a link wouldn't open. I'm not sure which link, but I suspect it was the one to Story Circle Network since it's the one that's a bit odd. When you click it, a notice comes up about space being limited at the conference hotel. Just click okay on that little announcement and the conference page opens.
http://www.storycircle.org/Conference/

Helen
Straight From Hel

Fireblossom said...

I love your creativity in jazzing up the potatoes.

Sings: the world's a nicer place in my beautiful balloon...

Stacy Post said...

Hot air balloon ride? I've always wanted to try that, but I worry...what happens if you need a bathroom? It's not like you can pull over, right?

Taters look tasty, Lizzy! Glad to hear you're writing. I can almost hear the crazy clicking of the keys all the way in Indiana.

Jeanie said...

I love Mr. Rogers, but I think I would like those potatos even more. I like the idea of a hot air balloon ride, but I think I like thinking about it more than I would actually like doing it. I see them every so often while I am driving to work, and they certainly are a beautiful sight floating in the sky.

Kristen Torres-Toro said...

Wow, they do sound good!

New things for me... my whole life is new. :0) I like it. But I'm giving myself a long time to adjust.

Jemi Fraser said...

Now I'm hungry again! I'll have to try that on the weekend (once I've done some shopping)!

Cloudia said...

You are blooming!



Aloha, Friend


Comfort Spiral

Rosaria Williams said...

You've got talent oozing out of you. Enjoy!

The romantic query letter and the happy-ever-after said...

Snow, cold and more snow and now I'm thinking of moving to your neighborhood.
Warm regards,
Simone

Donna M. Kohlstrom said...

The potatoes sound so good that I'm fixin' to go make them for breakfast! LOL!

Besides sneezing my brains out from allergies this weekend...Achoo!...I'm getting my new desk delivered for my home office! Yeah! I've been working off a board stretched across an old night stand! I'm becoming a classy writer now! LOL!

Angie Muresan said...

Those mashed potatoes... YUM! I am salivating just thinking about eating some.

joe doaks-Author said...

Those balloons are a common sight here in Albuquerque. We even have a world famous fiesta in October. We live in the country...sorta, and the balloons come directly over our house at, oh...50 feet on the way to landing. Very cool.

Best Wishes Galen.
Imagineering Fiction Blog

The Victorian Parlor said...

Oh my gosh the potatoes sound delicious! It made me realize how hungry I am (I haven't had lunch yet) so I'm off to eat:).

Blessings,

Kim

Anonymous said...

What delicious meals you prepare!

That hot air balloon would have been fun to see--especially first thing in the morning like that. Like the world swelled up with joy for a minute.

Congratulations on the whispering muse. I'd take midnight visits if it got her to show up!

Boozy Tooth said...

Mashed potatoes topped with cheese and peppers? I'm starting a fan club immediately. Throw a little ground sirloin or turkey underneath and you've got a Mexican Shepherd's pie. How utterly delish.

Now I'm craving potatoes.

THANKS.

Anne Spollen said...

Great recipe!

Our neighborhood is frozen in. It actually hurts to be outside.

I'm planning a garden - at the table with these great catalogs. It's one way to think spring.

Oh, and I nominated you for the happy award on my blog if you want to play.

colbymarshall said...

TATERS! MMMMMM! I lvoe me some taters! :-)

Woman in a Window said...

All this inspiration and look at that book over there in your sidebar, you lovely woman. Congrats!

In my neighbourhood...I've one coffee under my belt at 8:45 am (slept late) and I'm about to bundle up and head out into the snow for a walk. Quiet. Still. Morning walk.

xo
erin

Lauri said...

Love that your project is chasing you so! Fun part of writing....

Crystal Posey said...

I live in the ghetto, so there is always something interesting going on. What those things are, I don't know. 'Round here, it's safer to keep your nose in your own yard. LOL